Tuesday, January 27, 2009

You know, enjoying bits and pieces of different cultures can be a fun thing. The tradition of Las Posadas and La Cena de Nochebuena are family-worthy events that transcend cultures.

The practice of “me la robo” is not worth embracing. Me la robo is an indigenous Mexican tribal practice where the “groom” decides he wants a young woman for his wife (and I do mean young!), so he kidnaps her, has sex with her, then returns to ask permission to marry her. Of course the girl is tainted and no longer a virgin, so more often than not, permission is granted.

The practice has been going on in the small rural armpit town of Greenfield, in the Salinas Valley, for some time. The Triqui “tribe” is from the Oaxaca region of Mexico, and not only do they keep to themselves, they speak a tribal language and very little Spanish (and their children attend public school and of course require bilingual education that is a bit more complex than just teaching in Spanish and English.), they happily practice the act of me la robo. Never mind that it’s illegal in the United States to rape a girl and then “sell” her for beer, meat and cash, which is supposed to be used for the wedding celebration.

Late last year, 36-year old Marcileno Martinez allowed Preciliano Sanchez to act as a broker in the marriage for his 14-year old daughter. His neighbor, Margarito Galindo, 18, asked for the girl in marriage and agreed to pay a “dowry” of $16,000 cash and hundreds of cases of beer, wine, soda and meat for the wedding. Galindo bundled up the girl and took her to nearby Soledad, had sex with her, and then returned to Greenfield.

Martinez called the police when the dowry failed to appear, claiming his daughter had been kidnapped by Galindo. The girl and Galindo were found in an apartment three doors down. Galindo’s family produced the marriage contract and the girl claimed that everything was consensual.

Martinez is charged with providing his daughter for lewd acts, aiding and abetting statutory rape, both felonies, and cruelty to a child. Galindo has been charged with misdemeanor statutory rape.

All are illegal aliens.

It Is my understanding that the schools in Greenfield are broke because of the cost of educating the illegal alien children (and of course anchor babies) of the Triqui tribe. These kids do not speak Spanish, and no doubt their parents do little to nothing to help themselves or their children assimilate into the prevailing culture—which used to speak English and did not encourage sex with underage girls! I’ve been told anecdotally that a popular source of income is selling drugs. When I was a child, Greenfield was a quiet, clean and close-knit little town with Swiss-Italian farmers and dairymen, and the Hispanic families who lived there had deep roots in the community.

It’s a cesspool today. The dairies are gone, and the family farms have been gobbled up by larger agribusiness commercial faming firms. The city has a huge gang problem.

The bigger picture is this: the U.S. government’s failure to secure the southern border has destroyed Greenfield, just like it has destroyed hundreds of small towns all over the nation. The “benefit” of cheap illegal labor in no way can make up for the costs incurred by local and state government by giving taxpayer-subsidized services to the overwhelming illegal alien population that puts little financial resources back into the pot.

I have asked this rhetorical question before and I’ll ask it again: just which political party is dragging its heels the most when it comes to securing the border. The technology of fence building is pretty old and well-established. It’s easy to do. So that’s not the issue here.

Are Republicans the ones dragging their heels because of the cheap labor? Are Democrats pandering for votes and future Democratic voters? Isn’t it about time we really answer that question once and for all?

I’ve done farm work. It’s hard work but no worse than digging a ditch or picking up garbage cans. There are thousands of unemployed young people who reside in the U.S. legally. There is no reason those young men and women couldn’t do farm work for a season or two. It beats unemployment. Or does it?

And with the messiah president closing Gitmo, it’s going to be a simple thing for those prisoners to make the quick hop from Cuba to Mexico, and then north. Ah what the heck, there are probably maps being printed while I type this. Securing the border is for our own security, both physical and economic. Why can’t politicians get that?

You can read the latest news story about the Greenfield me lo robo case here.

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Cathy & Shorty

About Me

I am a middle-aged moderate Republican who is concerned about the direction this country is taking. I'm mostly socially liberal but I am very fiscally conservative and I think too many people in this country are waiting for handouts and not seeking solutions.